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Reddit mentions of Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources

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Reddit mentions: 38

We found 38 Reddit mentions of Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources. Here are the top ones.

Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources
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Found 38 comments on Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources:

u/autumnflower · 48 pointsr/islam

I would recommend reading a biography of the prophet (sawa). I think reading about the prophet's life is one of the best ways to understand Islam.

As a note, if the Qur'an translation you have is proving difficult to get through, try a different one. Not all translations are the same. You can go to quran.com to compare some translations or search this sub for some recommendations.

What about Islam's beliefs do you find difficult?

"Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; [and who] establishes prayer and gives zakah; [those who] fulfill their promise when they promise; and [those who] are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous." 2:177

Jesus (as) is a revered, respected and beloved prophet in Islam. He is mentioned a lot in the Qur'an, particularly in chapters 3 (Ali 'Imran) and 19 (Maryam).

On the off chance there is a mosque somewhere near you, try getting in touch or going to a visit just to check it out, ask some questions, etc.

Last but not least: Ask God for guidance. At night before you sleep, face the qiblah if you wish (north east), and ask God with a sincere intention to guide you to truth, to peace, to what is right and better for you, whatever it may be.

u/Elliot_Loudermilk · 18 pointsr/islam

Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources by Martin Ling |
PDF
| Audiobook Part 1

The Sealed Nectar by Safi-ur-Rhaman Al-Mubarakpuri

Lings book reads like a story, and it's pretty good.

The Sealed Nectar won 1st place in an international competition held by the Muslim World League in 1979 for best biography of the Prophet pbuh.

u/monk123 · 9 pointsr/islam

My advice is to pray to God to guide you to the truth. Then read a translation of the Quran and a biography of Prophet Muhammad(pbuh). I recommend this biography.

u/[deleted] · 8 pointsr/islam

Wa `alaykum,

I'll let others recommend websites. In terms of books, there's a lot of material in English available, but it can be tough to find stuff that's well-written. I've found many books to unfortunately be written in very dry and unengaging language due to the challenges of translations.

That being said, here are a few gems that I've come across:

  • Suzanne Haneef's book What Everyone Should Know About Islam and Muslims serves as an excellent primer on Islam. The author is a female convert, and I think she offers a unique perspective female readers will appreciate.
  • Martin Ling's Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources is an excellent English biography of the Prophet (s.). The book reads like a story as opposed to a dull recitation of dates and incidents. You'll encounter many names as the book progresses, but don't get overwhelmed. Lastly, the author made some mistakes that have been corrected by respected Islamic scholars (feel free to ask or PM if interested and I'll post/forward a link for more info) but for the most part I think it represents an excellent resource for the English reader.
  • I have not read the translation in full myself, but I have heard a lot of praise for M.A.S. Abdel Haleem's translation of the Qur'an from Muslims involved in introducing non-Muslims to Islam.

    Hope this helps!
u/jewiscool · 8 pointsr/islam

I recommend these books:

u/dakh7 · 8 pointsr/islam

Martin Lings "Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources" is constantly recommended to me by friends.

http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292415986&sr=8-1

u/counterplex · 6 pointsr/islam

Sorry, I'm fresh out of brickbats but here's some advice:

  • Study the Qur'an but try to do it with a commentary. It's heavy reading at times so to balance it out you can...
  • Study the life of Muhammad and see how he demonstrated Islam to the world. Try Martin Ling's "Muhammad - His Life Based on the Earliest Sources." While you're studying this material remember that...
  • When you have questions - as you doubtless will - you should turn to physical people preferably knowledgeable imams. Imams are like doctors - get a second opinion if you find yourself talking to someone who doesn't quite answer your question or doesn't seem to understand the nuances in your query. The imams you meet might tell you that...
  • Ramadan is coming up in 3 months - go visit your local mosque around sunset when everyone is breaking their fast. Introduce yourself and get to know Ramadan. If you've never had a date before, don't forget to...
  • Pick a date that's plump and moist and eat it. Make sure you open it up with your hands (or mouth) and take out the pit or you might end up with broken teeth. Finally, with summer almost upon us, don't forget to...
  • Wear sunscreen.
u/Atheizm · 4 pointsr/exmuslim

On top of Twenty-Three Years and Life of Muhammad, I also suggest http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537

u/NomaanMalick · 4 pointsr/islam

Check out this YouTube playlist. It's quite comprehensive.

Seerah of Prophet Muhammed (S)

In terms of books, you could read Martin Lings , or Tariq Ramadan , or Meraj Mohiuddin

Also, you could watch this as a primer on Islam.

u/Mac8v2 · 3 pointsr/unexpectedjihad

I am Catholic and learned most of what I know about Islam though university classes and independent research. I can give you a list of books I have read about Islam that will get you started.

Oxford English Koran
Obviously the primary text is important to have and the book is pretty small. Much smaller compared to the bible.



Hadith of Bukhari: Volumes I, II, III & IV


Half of Islamic law is derived from the Koran and the other half from the Hadith. The Hadith is the collection of events, and quotes by Mohammad and his followers. This book is huge and you shouldn't try to read the whole since it is just list quotes and who they are by. But it is a good reference source and something to page through.

Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources
Biography of Mohammad using historical sources. Good reference.



Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes



Brief 350 page run of Islamic history until now as told by a Muslim. I felt the book was a bit preachy and accusatory towards the end but I read it 6 years ago so my memory might be hazy. Still a good read if you want to try to understand how mainstream moderate Muslim scholars see things. It has a good bibliography too.




There are probably a bunch of other ones I am forgetting. Take a look through Amazon and see what else they have. I would only buy books from university presses or published by academics though. They can be dense and difficult but they are peer reviewed which is important since there is so much anti-Islam, pro-Islam publishing out there.








u/AndTheEgyptianSmiled · 3 pointsr/islam

Martin Lings' Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources is popular for good reason.

But the best history book I've seen is the work of Dr. Ali M. Sallabi.

It's two volumes and like 2000 pages but it's fascinating read.

I have it on PDF if you want it.


**


For understanding context, Dr. Jonathan Brown is an excellent resource. He's got several books, including his most recent Misquoting Muhammad: The Challenge and Choices of Interpreting the Prophet's Legacy (he's already working on 2nd edition lol...)

u/Harybutts · 2 pointsr/islam

Where are you getting your sources from?

Here are a few book suggestions:

Martin Lings - Amazon Books

The Sealed Nectar - Amazon Books

Karen Armstrong - Amazon Books

If you are interesting in some audio, here is a detailed breakdown of the Shama'il of Imam Tirmidhi (which describes mannerisms and characteristics of the Prophet) by Shaykh Husain Abdul Sattar (a well know Islamic scholar and well known medical doctor)

http://sacredlearning.org/shamail-of-imam-tirmidhi?layout=category

u/Zendani · 2 pointsr/islam

Are you contending that Muhammad never existed? Simply because you can't find historians who are not Muslim that mention him? Maybe you should read this book. It's by Martin Lings, who was the curator for oriental manuscripts and printed books at the British Museum and at Cambridge.

edit: He did convert to Islam by they way. If that matters to you.

u/WhiteRastaJ · 2 pointsr/AskHistorians

That's not wholly fair--several of us have provided good information, not faux scholarship or atheist reactionary rants!

I do want to throw in a few extra points to go with yours. I agree that pre-Islamic Arabia was not as barbarous as is sometimes assumed, however the reforms that Muhammad ushered in were often welcome and needed--giving women rights for example, and forbidding female infanticide.

It is true that we have no proof of Muhammad's illiteracy. Indeed, the first word of the first Qur'anic verse (in terms of chronology), 'iqra (أقرا) can be translated either 'read' or 'recite' so it sheds little light on that (source--Dr. Jamal Badawi's writings and classes).

The Qur'an was written down and compiled under the aegis of Uthman ibn Affan, as we've discussed elsewhere in this thread.

I also agree that many joined the early ummah out of a desire to improve their lot. This wasn't limited to Arabia; when Islam began to spread out from there it was originally meant to be an Arab religion and conversion was discouraged, however many converted in order to enjoy the same benefits as the Muslims did.

A lot of this is made very clear in the best seerah (bio of Muhammad) available in English, which is Martin Lings' Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources. A caveat on this book: Lings was a faithful Muslim and wrote from a faith-based position, so it does lose some scholarly objectivity. However its a great read and its easy to maintain your own objectivity as you read it.

Also, Ira Lapidus' A History of Islamic Societies has a good section on pre-Islamic Arabia, as does Albert Hourani's History of the Arab Peoples IIRC.

I recommend all three books to anyone wanting to pursue this subject further.

u/zilozi · 2 pointsr/Christianity

Let me start with the basic. We love all of our Prophet's like you love Jesus Christ, but we do have a special place in our heart for Muhammad. He was a man who was deeply worried about peoples soul. He told people to avoid the temptation of Satan and to worship the god of Abraham. No one can be a Muslim and reject Jesus Christ at the same time. So when Jews become a Muslim they accepted Jesus. He was very compassionate and caring

I had a Funny conversation with a christian once. He came up to me and we talked about religion. He then concluded that I didn't worship his God. I replied thank goodness.. Because I worship the lord who created the heaven and the earth and everything in between and then I asked him who he worshiped ( BTW the conversation ended with him telling me who I worship, because he refused to let me worship ' The one true God, God ' )?




Start with lectures to actually see what Muslims lecturer teach their general population (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLVPT3bB9nk).

http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449867261&sr=8-1&keywords=prophet+muhammad

u/KASKAx · 2 pointsr/Christianity

Yes, I do!

The 3 best ones that I have ever seen are:

The Sealed Nectar

Muhammad: His Life Based On The Earliest Sources

In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad

The last one is by Tariq Ramadan. It would probably be the easiest one to digest/read for someone not too familiar with Islam or Muhammad peace be upon him.

u/AlbanianDad · 2 pointsr/news

>Religion is a creation of mankind to keep people in line and to explain things that over time science has been able to explain over and over again.

This is an unfounded claim. If you read about Muhammad's life (peace be upon him) you will see that your theory does hold apply at all. That was not his motivation for "inventing" Islam (as you might call it) whatsoever. Rather, his actions testify that he truly believed he was a messenger of God. Nobody who would lie about such a thing would go through the trials and tribulations (him and/or his followers getting boycotted, murdered, kidnapped, ridiculed constantly, exhiled, etc) that he did for no worldly gain.

u/bipolargraph · 2 pointsr/islam

This is an excellent, but pretty long source, by Yasir Qadhi. You can use it to look up whatever controversy, or topic (for example, muslim wars), to see their context in detail.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAEA99D24CA2F9A8F

This is a well praised book, yet I didn't read it to be honest:
https://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537/ref=zg_bs_12532_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=1E7EFS62ZE6WF9E67CPR

u/mybahaiusername · 2 pointsr/islam

There are so many great books, but I try to focus on ones the cite the earliest sources. For English speakers I found the combination of Martin Lings book along with Haleem's Qur'an translation to be the best two sources.

u/TheCannon · 1 pointr/changemyview

>source.

Sources abound for each of your requests. Here are but a few for each that should keep you busy for a while if you actually choose to read them:

Caravan Raids:

Ibn Ishaq - Life of Muhammad Search "Caravan"

Ibn Kathir - The Life of the Prophet Muhammad, Vol. 2 Search "Caravan"

Quranic reference justifying caravan attacks during the holy months:

>They ask you about the sacred month - about fighting therein. Say, "Fighting therein is great [sin], but averting [people] from the way of Allah and disbelief in Him and [preventing access to] al-Masjid al-Haram and the expulsion of its people therefrom are greater [evil] in the sight of Allah . And fitnah is greater than killing." And they will continue to fight you until they turn you back from your religion if they are able. And whoever of you reverts from his religion [to disbelief] and dies while he is a disbeliever - for those, their deeds have become worthless in this world and the Hereafter, and those are the companions of the Fire, they will abide therein eternally

  • Qur'an 2:217

    The slaughter and enslavement of the Banu Qurayza:

    Ibn Ishaq Search "Qurayza"

    Martin Lings, Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources Unfortunately not available in PDF or TXT files

    Encyclopedia Judiaica - Non-Islamic historical source

    Watt, Encyclopedia of Islam

    See also Al-Tabari Vol 8, Sunan Abu Dawud 38:4390, Sahih Bukhari 5:58:148, Tafsir Ibn Kathir - The Campaign against Banu Qurayzah*, etc

    Quranic reference:

    >(26) And He brought down those who supported them among the People of the Scripture from their fortresses and cast terror into their hearts [so that] a party you killed, and you took captive a party. (27) And He caused you to inherit their land and their homes and their properties and a land which you have not trodden. And ever is Allah, over all things, competent.

  • Qur'an 33:26-27

    Started Wars:

    *See Caravan Raids above, the robberies that forced military response from the victims of the raids, the Quraysh, leading to the battles of Badr, Uhud, the Trench, etc.

    Torture people in pursuit of wealth:**

    >Kinana b. al-Rabi', who had the custody of the treasure of the B. al-Nadir, was brought to the apostle who asked him about it. He denied that he knew where it was. A Jew came (Tabari says "was brought") to the apostle and said that he had seen Kinana going round a certain ruin every morning early. When the apostle said to Kinana, 'Do you know that if we find you have it I shall kill you?' he said Yes. The apostle gave orders that the ruin was to be excavated and some of the treasure was found. When he asked him about the rest he refused to produce it, so the apostle gave ordrs to al-Zubayr b. al-'Awwam, 'Torture him until you extract what he has,' so he kindled a fire with flint and steel on his chest until he was nearly dead. Then the apostle delivered him to Muhammad b. Maslama and he struck off his head in revenge for his brother Mahmud.

  • Ishaq - The Life of Muhammad (Link above, search "Kinana")

    >Kinanah b. al-Rabi b. al-Huqyaq who had the treasure of B. Nadir was brought to the Messenger of God, who questioned him; but he denied knowing where it was. Then the messenger of God was brought a Jew who said to him, “I have seen Kinanah walk around this ruin every morning.” The Messenger of God said to Kinanah: “What do you say? If we find it in your possession, I will kill you.” “All right,” he answered. The Messenger of God commanded that the ruin should be dug up, and some of the treasure was extracted from it. Then he asked him for the rest of it. Kinanah refused to surrender it; so the Messenger of God gave orders concerning him to al-Zubayr b. al-‘Awwam, saying, “torture him until you root out what he has.” Al-Zubayr kept twirling his firestick in his breast until Kinanah almost expired; then the Messenger of God gave him to Muhammad b. Maslamah, who beheaded him to avenge his brother Mahmud b. Maslamah.”

  • Tabari Vol 8

    Etc.

    Killed Poets:

    List of those slaughtered with references, including a mother of five:

    >Then (occurred) the sariyyah of Umayr ibnAdi Ibn Kharashah al-Khatmi against Asma' Bint Marwan, of Banu Umayyah Ibn Zayd, when five nights had remained from the month of Ramadan, in the beginning of the nineteenth month from the hijrah of the apostle of Allah.Asma' was the wife of Yazid Ibn Zayd Ibn Hisn al-Khatmi. She used to revile Islam, offend the prophet and instigate the (people) against him. She composed verses. Umayr Ibn Adi came to her in the night and entered her house. Her children were sleeping around her. There was one whom she was suckling. He searched her with his hand because he was blind, and separated the child from her. He thrust his sword in her chest till it pierced up to her back. Then he offered the morning prayers with the prophet at al-Medina. The apostle of Allah said to him: "Have you slain the daughter of Marwan?" He said: "Yes. Is there something more for me to do?" He [Muhammad] said: "No. Two goats will butt together about her. This was the word that was first heard from the apostle of Allah. The apostle of Allah called him `Umayr, "basir" (the seeing).

  • Ibn Sa'd
u/katulsomin · 1 pointr/islam

Sorry for the late response! I had a very busy week at work.

> Devils may be swift but it is not reasonable that they possess the ability to be all-seeing and all-present. Those can only be attributed to God. If a devil did to the sun what appeared to happen, this would have been a phenomenon reported all over the globe and would have had measurable impact on temperature, gravity, tides, etc. That did not happen. If it was a devil that worked via the mind, then this would have to have been done to everyone there. Such a feat is less credible than it happening to a single person or a small group of persons because of the finite number of devils available. So I'm not saying it is impossible but if we take the expected value of a situation, the situation with vastly larger numbers becomes more believable, ruling out delusion and making less credible the possibility of a devil.
> > And we haven't even consider what if there's multiple demon working together.

> This is possible but in the history of humanity, I'm not aware of any recorded demonic activity on this level. I am aware of many such cases with one or a small number of individuals.

The scenario I'm imagining is more like a magic trick, the real sun behind a curtain while a demon conjures a sun like disk and perform the show. So it still only need a single apparition. If the sun really did dance, it would've been observed everywhere, not just from a specific location. I actually even think that for a mere human, with a enough funds, those things are achievable with our current level of technology.

> Well we can add to the list that they lack a corporal body. Really, we should brainstorm this list. I'd also include that the devil hates God. If you have any input on this, let's have it. It seems relevant to the question of if Mohammed was under influence of a devil.

I don't agree that they lack a corporal body, actually. They main essence maybe non corporeal, but they seem to have the ability to shapeshift into a corporeal form. Off the top of my head, doesn't the Devil appear in the garden as a snake in the book of genesis?

I don't have much else to brainstorm.. sorry! If you want to read more of the Islamic view, see the wikipedia articles for Devil in Islam and Jinn (demons are basically an evil jinn). Likewise, I'll use Demon in Christian for reference. Unless you have a better source, which then please share.

> The devil wants you in hell. I think he will attempt to get a person there any way he finds possible. I once was told a sermon about a man who used sorcery to conger the devil. He asked the devil, "Are the 10 commandments true?" The devil replied, "Yes, every one except the 6th." This was enough for the man to fall into sin and build a wall around his heart.

> If what Christianity teaches about Jesus is true, then the message of Mohammed would be enough to ruin a vast number of souls. If the devil says, worship one God and do not steal or kill, but that Jesus is not God, then the devil has a small victory. There are also differences in teaching about what constitutes a moral family life (or sins related to family relationships) between the two religions -- and I think we could both agree that the devil would desire to seek the ruin of man through an attack on the family.

> Likewise, if Islam is true, then Christianity may be a tool of the devil (or corrupt men) to ruin souls. Or it could be that they are both false and the truth eludes us both.

OK, I'll try to go along with you on these 3 possibilities. No, actually lets ignore the possibility that they're both false, that won't go anywhere. Christian or Islam, I think we can agree that either is a tool of the devil as possible.

My argument for Islam's validity would be that Islam theologically is the most consistent with the previous revelations(eg. Judaism). All the previous prophets before Jesus preach about the absolute oneness of God. Given that Trinity is the central belief of Christianity, I would expect that such an important concept would be covered by the previous messengers of God. I know Jesus technically isn't born yet, but the Holy Spirit should still be mentioned as God. The Trinity tenet itself isn't officially adopted until the Council of Nicaea 3 centuries later, right?

My premise is that since God has revealed a string of revelations from various prophets, a corrupted one most likely be one that deviates the most of the others. The Muslims believe that actually Jesus is a prophet, born of virgin that preaches the absolute oneness of God too. But over time, his message got corrupted. So then God sends down another revelation by another prophet, Muhammad PBUH to straighten it. Some even claim that Muhammad PBUH coming was foretold in the bible

Please tell me and forgive for any factual errors btw, especially regarding the Christian ones. I'm not a scholar, just a guy that sometimes read stuff on the internet :)

> If Islam has any possibility of moving me, it needs to address the question of angel Gabriel to Mohammed as being delusion, devil, or true and then it needs to establish for me why God cannot be said to be humble (unless Muslims who've told me this is false were wrong).

For the question of Gabriel -> Muhammad PBUH, I'm having trouble finding an argument that would 100% convince you. We know that the event is, like most other prophets, occurs in relative isolation and personal fashion, with no outside witnesses. That's just how it's done. The people then judge the message authenticity by the contents and the messenger's character.

I would suggest to just read the Al Qu'ran, and a biography about the prophet so you can get a better understanding of his life to make a conclusion. His life are fairly well documented, and not just the rosy bits, some of his mistakes are even recorded in the Al Qu'ran! The most popular ones are The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet by Safi and Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources by Martin Lings, or if you prefer a secular author you can checkout Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time by Karen Armstrong

For the "Prove that God is not humble".. well actually I don't even know until now that Christianity teaches that God is humbling himself to us. Please give me a source about this, I want to know more.

In Islam, as far as I know, God is not humble, but pride. And it is actually sinful for us to be prideful of things cause everything we have(wealth, knowledge, even our own virtues), it is all thanks to God and He can give or take it away at any time if He wills. He is the only one worthy of pride.

He gave us free will, but what we do that God let it happen doesn't mean that He submits to our will, He just let it and gave us the time for now. But everything that we've done would be held accountable at judgement day.

> Thank you for your writings so far. You have shown to be reasonable and not emotionally reactive. I find that conversations like this sometimes get nowhere because an adherent finds a question of theological principles to be also a personal attack, which it is not, but some have a hard time distinguishing. So thank you.

Thank you too! I also try to question your principles but so far you're level headed and doesn't get too emotional. It's great that we can have a civilized discussion on the internet. The other users in this subreddit are actually also pretty cool too! Some of them are actually much more knowledgeable than me. They just doesn't seem to want to engage in a discussion that at first glance, would go nowhere. This sub are riddled by trolls on a regular basis, and a tendency of trolls is to dwell stubbornly on a single point so I'm afraid some may mistaken you for one. Sorry!

u/senditthru · 1 pointr/islam

Maybe you should learn a little bit about our Prophet's life before you spout Christian missionary invectives upon him.

Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources

u/shikatozi · 1 pointr/islam

Salaam Sbadiglio. Thanks, but the important thing to remember is that there are other Muslims just like me all around the world, and I'm not even that good. I'm not a shiek/imam, and I do sin, whether I know it or not. However, I do ask Allah for forgiveness for the sin I do. Alhamduallah Allah knows best.

Are there sins so great that could get someone beyond redemption? The most dangerous sin is shirk, that is idolatry or polytheism. It is important to emphasize that in Islam, there is no God but Allah. Can shirk/murder/fornication/etc be forgiven? It is up to Allah. However, it is important for Muslims to quickly recognize that if they are sinning to quickly stop doing the sin and ask forgiveness and to prevent themselves from sinning again. Intention is also important; what is in your heart is the true intention.

are you free to read it and take "lessons" from it by yourself or is there only one way for everyone? A couple of things: 1) Translated versions of the Quran are not the Quran. The Quran is only the Quran if it is in Arabic. In addition, the Quran is an -immensely- complex and logical book. True scholars in Islam do not just read the Quran, they read the hadiths (stories of the Prophet Muhammed peace and blessings to him) associated with the sura (chapter), they study for years and years the scholars before themselves, they spend incredible amount of time, wisdom, and energy deriving lessons from the Quran. But you might ask yourself, if the book is so complex, then how is it supposed to be a manual for humanity? Well, at the same time, the Quran lays out simple laws for the common man to obey. Do not cheat on your wife, do no injustice to your fellow man, do not oppress, eat halal and spend your money on charity, pray 5 times a day, fast during Ramadan. These are simple laws that everyone can follow. So, in essence, yes you can read the Quran, but -understanding- it is a different thing. To understand the Quran, I highly recommend going to a mosque, watching Islamic videos (the good, authentic ones with sources), taking classes, talking to fellow Muslims, reading Islamic books and really diving into the history of Islam. I really recommend you read this book. It is about the Prophet Muhammed, peace and blessings upon him. It's a good first step.

do you think that muslim face discrimination in the world nowdays? No doubt about it. Somewhere around the world, there are people being discriminated for their race, belief, ideas, religion, etc. One of the worst sins is oppression. Oppressing others/not treating them fairly is very bad. We must be mindful and proactive about stopping this discrimination/oppression. If you see a child treating another child unfairly, we must teach them the right way to treat one another.

Yes, well media is media, they have their own agenda and their own intention. But alhamduallah there is no greater force than Allah, and I would rather be a bum who is a devout Muslim than the King of the finite world
who is not Muslim. It is this inner serenity, this peace that Islam has that cannot be brought or challenged.

Salaam friend!

u/bass85 · 1 pointr/islam

This should be sufficient:
http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292668572&sr=8-1

Muhammad by Martin Lings is a biography of the prophet. Very well written, authentic and clears alot of misconceptions. I would advice you to read it as well, I promise you'll enjoy it yourself and learn alot about Islam.

u/convertproblem134 · 1 pointr/islam

I would recommend reading the biography done by Martin Lings.

http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537

u/crockrox · 1 pointr/islam

You can start with biography of the prophet .

And then perhaps the Quran.

Good luck.

P.S. Personal opinion. Not an expert.

u/thelectrician · 1 pointr/pics

As a Muslim I sincerely believe the same God had sent the New Testamentm but it was distorted throughout time. 'Klansmen' could misinterpret the testament in a wrong way similar to ISIS guys. Interpretation is an important issue. I suggest you not to drown yourself in ISIS interpretation of Quran, but to learn from the verily source.

https://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1488215469&sr=8-1&keywords=martin+lings+muhammad

But it is just a suggestion. I am not a preacher, not a great debater, or something like that. I am just a regular muslim, who wants to live peacefully, and wants others to live in peace.

Thank you for your kind answers.

u/pravoslavie · 1 pointr/Christianity

A complete defense of the character of the Prophet is a bit of a tall order for a reddit comment, and I'm much too underqualified to provide it given that I myself am a recent convert still learning the seerah.

If you'd like, you could bring up specific claims and I could do my best to point you to answers, but frankly, though I know relatively little about the life of the Prophet, his family, and his companions, what I do know about him couldn't be further from the barbaric, power-hungry sexual deviant that people might try to portray him as.

In 1928, Mohandas Gandhi is recorded as saying the following of the Prophet in Young India:

>I wanted to know the best of the life of one who holds today an undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of mankind. I became more than ever convinced that it was not the sword that won a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet and the scrupulous regard for pledges, his intense devotion to his friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in God and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried everything before them and surmounted every obstacle. When I closed the second volume (of the Prophet's biography), I was sorry there was not more for me to read of that great life.

As far as I can tell, this is the best English language resource on his life. I think all serious thinking people owe it to themselves to honestly investigate why this man is held dear by almost two billion people. Instead of dismissing his followers as poor souls misled by malevolent forces, he should be approached without the biases of a religious agenda.

u/REDPlLL · 1 pointr/exmuslim

Well i gave you a dictionary definition of lying. If you define "lie" to mean something else, then go ahead. But Islam does not permit lying according to the definition i gave ("saying something incorrect"). So if someone were to ask me if i was a Muslim and i don't respond, then that's not a lie using the definition i gave.

The problem with your definition is that it leads to interpretive problems (which i think you hate). If i assume your a Christian this whole time, and you are an atheist, then i can claim that you lied to me. You deceived me by not being open to me about your lack of faith. You could claim that you weren't trying to act Christian, but i could claim the opposite and there is no objective measure that we both could agree on to always determine who in fact is right here.

> Can you recommend some? From what I've seen, most of Islamic history is an expansion of conquest and subjugation that makes the British Empire look like the Salvation Army.

More like the opposite. Here's a highly recommended biography:
http://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/1594771537

u/shakuntala_d · 1 pointr/islam

I'd suggest this book!

It's great for beginners and easy to read.

u/yolakalemowa · 1 pointr/dataisbeautiful

Please read more from the sources that MUSLIMS claim to be authentic. Read Muhammad by Martin Lings.

Get to know him and his family and companions. This is the most rigorously and authentically documented and biographized life of a human being in history. We know how he drank, ate, dressed, we know how many white hairs he had by the end of his life. We know how he recited the Qur'an to the level of how he moved his tongue...

We know he preferred to sit when he drinks, and when he'd drink he'd do it with his right hand, on 3 separate phases, not all at once, so as not to shock the body. We know he entered (what is the equivalent of bathroom at the time) with his right foot and exited with his left. We know how he cleaned his teeth and how he flossed, how he cleaned himself to the very detail. How he moved his index finger in prayer, where he placed his eyes. What he said when he saw the moon, in its different stages.

We know what he did when it rained. He'd go outside, expose his shoulders to it, welcoming "A most recent companion of its Lord".

I can go on forever ¯_(ツ)_/¯.

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Let me know if you have any questions or sources :) ʾinshāʾAllāh I can help!

Thank you for giving me opportunity to write this. I benefitted from it a lot!

Salām